Eligible pharmacists will receive two non-consolidated lump sums throughout the year totalling 5.75% of their annual salary, the union’s national officer and its lead negotiator with Lloydspharmacy, Paul Moloney, revealed to those affected last month (March 28).

The agreement, which the union announced on its website today (April 19), means that members working for Lloydspharmacy and other Hallo Healthcare companies where the PDA acts as a negotiator will receive one 3.5% lump sum in April and a further 2.25% lump sum in October.

Read more: Lloydspharmacy rejects 7% pay rise proposal ‘out of hand’, PDA claims

Both sums will be given to those at risk or under notice of redundancy or threat of transfer at the time of payment, the PDA said.

 

“Firmly in the interests of members”

 

Mr Moloney said the pay deal is “in line with average earnings across the private sector” and ensures the salary of its members remains “in line with those in the UK”.

The proposal was “clearly [Lloydspharmacy's] final offer” and has “significantly improved” compared to the offers made at other points during the pay talks, he added.

Mr Moloney said the PDA and Lloydspharmacy were able to “progress matters” after members’ “strength of feeling” was communicated.

Read more: All Lloydspharmacy branches reportedly ‘at risk’ of closure

The “vast majority” of members who responded to a question from the PDA amid stalling negotiations supported registering a dispute with Lloydspharmacy, “which ultimately could lead to industrial action”, he claimed.

"We believe the acceptance of the offer is firmly in the interests of members in view of the particular circumstances of uncertainty that exist at the moment and the need to ensure payment is made as quickly as possible,” he said.

It comes as the union reported last month (March 6) that Lloydspharmacy had outright rejected a 7% pharmacist pay rise proposal for PDA members on the basis that it was “disrespectful to you and your representatives”.

Read more: Lloydspharmacy defends position amid Sainsbury’s redundancy row

“On balance, we therefore felt the offer achieves much of what we set out to achieve while fully acknowledging it falls below all measures of inflation,” Mr Moloney told members of the accepted pay offer.

The PDA has agreed payments should be non-consolidated lump sum payments, rather than added to pharmacists’ salaries, to ensure the best deal for every member – including those facing redundancy or a transfer to new owners. 

“By structuring the deal in this way, we believe we have ensured that members in this position will receive the same benefit from this agreement as those members who will still be with the company this time next year,” Mr Moloney said.

 

Lloydspharmacy: A “different approach”

 

A Lloydspharmacy spokesperson told C+D that this year marked a "different approach" to the company's annual pay review process, which they said took "cost-of-living" challenges into account.

Read more: Lloydspharmacy quits Sainsbury’s: What we do (and don't) know so far

The "innovative approach" was "well received" by the multiple's pharmacists and the PDA, and Lloydspharmacy is "pleased with how the process has worked and that we have reached a good outcome”, they said.

They continued: “The last year has been another challenging period for us and the wider pharmacy industry. We continue to support our patients and customers across the UK and, as always, we are ever grateful to our pharmacists for their much-valued contribution."

 

Deal covers members under TUPE arrangements

 

Only those who have voluntarily resigned and are working their notice period on April 1 or October 1 respectively will not qualify for the pay deal, the PDA clarified.

But it said that members who voluntarily resign from either April 2 or October 2 onwards will receive each respective lump payment “in full”.

Read more: Lloydspharmacy: PDA considering ‘legal action’ over redundancy dispute

Meanwhile, members under TUPE arrangements who transfer to a different company between April 1 and September 30 will be paid the October sum by their new employer “as this payment transfers to a new employer as part of your contract of employment”, the PDA explained.

“Lloydspharmacy has confirmed all new employers will be advised of this prior to any sale taking place,” according to the union.

And the overtime rate for PDA members will continue to be 1.5 times basic pay, the union added.

 

Pay increase tops NHS recommendation

 

The deal represents a 5.75% pay uplift, which the PDA said is above the 5% offer that is “now being recommended by NHS trade unions after prolonged strike action”.

Read more: Lloydspharmacy to ‘withdraw’ pharmacy services from all Sainsbury’s branches

It follows the announcement that Lloydspharmacy will withdraw pharmacy services from 237 Sainsbury’s supermarkets, which C+D exclusively revealed earlier this year (January 19).

At the time, the multiple told C+D that “how colleagues are potentially affected” by the news would “vary on a branch-by-branch basis”.

And there are rumours in the national press that all of Lloydspharmacy’s UK pharmacies are “at risk” of closure as part of a strategic review of the business.

The multiple has told C+D that it “does not comment on articles that have been published based on unverified information”.